How the Cybermen (Almost) Stole Christmas
by Darth Brando
Summary: The Doctor Who: The Hunger Games Series Christmas Special! When the Doctor stops at the North Pole to visit Santa, the trio discovers that Cybermen have taken over the workshop. Note that this is NOT part of the main storyline, but is instead just for fun. And because no season of Doctor Who would be complete without a Christmas (or Winter) special.
1. The Workshop

Snow. That's the first thing I'm aware of as I step out of the TARDIS. "Where are we?" I ask, surveying the landscape. There's not much to be said for it beyond that except it's a plain of snow that stretches as far as I can see in every direction. And it's cold. Not just uncomfortably cold, but the kind of bitter cold that sinks into the bones. I shiver and adjust my scarf. Fortunately, there's no wind.

"The North Pole!" The Doctor declares as he bounds out of the TARDIS. He wears the same thing as always. The only difference is the addition of a red hat with a white furry base and a white fuzzy ball of at the tip.

"Can you be a little more specific?" I ask grumpily, kicking at a clump of snow. It breaks apart and a puff of snow blows up into the air before settling on the cold ground. I do not want to be here. The Doctor initially told us we were going somewhere called Hawai'i which he described as being "one of the most beautiful places in the Universe". Peeta and I agreed to go there. Instead, the Doctor brought us to this frozen wasteland. If this is the Doctor's idea of a joke, it's not funny.

"We're on Earth," the Doctor says. "I just thought it would be nice to visit an old friend. I don't do social calls very often."

"Who's mad enough to live here?" I ask.

"Santa Clause!" The Doctor announces happily. "Come on." The Doctor bounds off in a seemingly arbitrary direction.

"Who's Santa Clause?" Peeta asks.

The Doctor trips and lands face-first in the snow. He pulls his face out of the snow to regard Peeta and me. "How do you not know Santa?" He asks. He seems genuinely horrified that we don't know what he's talking about. I don't know why he's so surprised. I feel like I never know what he's talking about.

"Should we?" Peeta asks.

"Of course you should know Santa!" the Doctor proclaims. "Everyone knows Santa!"

"Obviously not," I comment dryly.

"Once a year he travels around the world, delivering gifts to all the children of the world in one night," the Doctor explains. "He's jovial and fun and really quite interesting once you get around his annoying habit of laughing at everything he says. That and his cookie and milk addiction. Never leaves any for anyone else. It's quite rude."

"He travels all around the world in one night?" Peeta asks.

"Technically, yes," the Doctor answers. "He uses wormholes and several robot copies, but it all gets done in one night."

"And he does this, why?" I ask.

"It's tradition!" the Doctor exlaims.

"What does that have to do with it?" I ask.

"I don't know," the Doctor says irritably. "Ask him when we get to his workshop."

I glance around the frozen landscape. "Are you sure we're in the right place?" I ask. There's nothing that resembles so much as a shed in sight.

"Of course we are!" The Doctor says. He pulls out his screwdriver and activates it. At first nothing happens. Then I notice a disturbance in a small patch of snow. Something is pushing its way out from underneath the snow. I'm preparing myself to run from something else that probably wants to kill us when the patch bursts up and a pole pops out of the ground. It's has a large gold ball at the top. The pillar itself is colored with even-sized white and red strips.

"What is it?" I ask as it stops rising.

"The North Pole," the Doctor responds as he strides towards the pole. "It has two purposes. To mark the northernmost point of Earth, and to open the way to Santa's workshop."

A hatch on the North Pole slides open revealing a keypad. The Doctor presses several of the buttons and the pole slides higher up. The snow beneath my feet starts cracking as something from below pushes up. I take several steps back to the still snow and watch as a small building about the size of the TARDIS pops out of the snow.

The Doctor opens the door and bounds inside. Peeta and I follow him inside. Unlike the TARDIS, this box isn't bigger on the inside. Instead, the three of us are crammed together. The door slides closed behind us, and I feel a dropping sensation. When it stops, the door slides open and I step out and look around in confusion. It doesn't look like any workshop I've ever seen. Actually it doesn't really look like anything except like a bomb went off. Charred pieces of unidentifiable stuff is scattered all around. Pillars have been blown away, leaving splintered ends. What looks like melted pieces of machinery lay scattered all around us.

"What is this place?" I ask.

The Doctor takes in the destruction around us. "It _was_ Santa's workshop," he says grimly.

"What happened?" Peeta asks.

"Let's find out," the Doctor says moving deeper into the workshop.

We make our way through the workshop without comment. It looks like there was a fight of some sort in here. Toys, parts of toys, pieces of the ceiling, walls and equipment are scattered around the floor. Some pillars have been blown apart as have some of the workbenches. There are scorch marks in the walls that look like some sort of energy weapon was used. The only thing missing is bodies.

At least there aren't any until we reach the end of the workshop. That's when Peeta stumbles over a metal arm. At first I think it's a piece of a toy, but there's something familiar about it. Whatever it's attached to is buried under a pile of rubble so Peeta and I set about clearing it off.

"What is it?" The Doctor asks.

"There's an arm," I grunt as I try to move a heavy beam out of the way. "But whoever it's attached to is buried under the rubble."

The Doctor examines the arm. "Get back!" he says.

"What is it?" Peeta asks warily.

"This isn't just an arm," the Doctor says. "It's a Cyberman's arm."


	2. Santa

**Hey all, just as a heads up I've got family coming to visit for Christmas on Thursday. Since it would be rude to lock myself up in my room and write while they're here, whatever isn't up on Thursday probably won't go up until after Christmas. Then I'll only have a couple days before my marching band goes to our bowl game and I won't have internet access, let alone the time to write stuff. But I'll do my best to get as much as possible done while I can. With any luck this will all be done soon after Christmas (it's not going to be a very long story. Only a couple chapters). Anyway, I hope you're all having an awesome holiday season, and if you're still in school, good luck on final tests and projects.**

**Also as a point of clarification, the Christmas Special doesn't take place at any particular point in the series (i.e. it doesn't necessarily follow Shatter Point). It just happens. So you can put it wherever you want to really. So without further ado,**

**Allons-y!**

* * *

"Cybermen?" I ask. I remember the Cybermen all too well. We faced them on the hospital Satellite Seven where they were converting patients. We managed to stop them by blowing it up, but clearly that wasn't enough. I'm not overly keen to face them again. "What are they doing here?"

"Nothing good," the Doctor says.

"Obviously," I say dryly. Since when has anything we've run into ever been good? I'm starting to wonder if travelling with the Doctor will be the death of me. I've never had to run for my life more often, not even during the Games. On the upside, it has gotten me back in shape and I'm finally starting to work off the cheese buns I'm overly fond of.

"How did they get here?" Peeta asks. "I thought we destroyed them."

"This is a different group," the Doctor says. "I faced them the last time I was in the arctic. They crash landed into Earth ten thousand years ago and were frozen in ice. They were discovered and accidentally activated. I blew up their ship and I thought they were all destroyed. Obviously some of them survived. Based on the level of destruction I would say between ten and twenty."

"Correct," a mechanical voice drones. I spin to see a Cyberman standing behind us. "Your attempt to delete us was ninety-three percent successful."

"Then what are you lot doing here?" the Doctor asks."There's no one to convert. And with as few of you as there are, why would you risk attacking this place?"

"We require the workshop," the Cyberman drones. "The risk was deemed acceptable."

"What do you need the workshop for?" the Doctor asks. "You can't make Cybermen with it. You need people for that. And there aren't any. Not around here anyways."

"Incorrect," the Cyberman drones. "The companions will be converted and the Doctor will be deleted."

"You lot are so uncreative," the Doctor comments. "Every time, it's the same thing. Honestly, when has that ever worked for you lot?"

The Cyberman reaches out a hand towards us. "Delete!" it exclaims. I instinctively reach for an arrow. But I grasp only air. I remember too late that I left my bow and quiver on the TARDIS. With no way to fight, I turn and run through a large pair of doors at the end of the workshop. Peeta and the Doctor follow.

We enter a long hallway that seems to stretch forever to the left and right. "This way," the Doctor says, pushing past me. "We need to find Santa. He'll know what's going on."

The Doctor leads us down the hallway. We don't stop until we reach another pair of doors. The one on the left has a large golden S, and the one on the right a C. Above the doors is are white and red stripped windows. The Doctor pushes on the doors, but they don't budge. "It's locked and barred," he says.

He glances up at the windows. "But we might be able to go around," he muses. He glances at me, then back at the windows. "Over, technically. Katniss might be able to fit through. Help me lift her up."

Peeta and the Doctor lift me up to the window. I'm about to break it when I notice the hinges. I pull the window open before pulling myself up onto the windowsill. I manage to turn myself so my feet go through the window first, then I carefully lower myself until I'm hanging from the windowsill by my fingers. I let go and fall the few feet left. My feet hit the ground and I fall to my knees. The jolt travels up my spine and rattles my teeth, but I didn't fall far enough to have broken anything. I stand and dust myself off.

"It is good that you've come Katniss," a voice says. I spin around to locate the source.

The first thing I'm aware of is a mass of red. Red pants, red jacket, and a red hat over a large, round, reddish face. The only contrasting color is white. Both the pants, jacket, and hat are trimmed by white. The man's face is mostly obscured by a massive white beard and I can see wisps of white hair below the hat. "Who are you?" I ask warily.

The man brings a pipe to his lips and takes a puff before answering. "I'm Santa Clause," he says. "Or Father Christmas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, Babbo Natale, or one of a hundred others if you prefer one of those instead."

"How did you know who I am?" I demand. I don't trust this man though part of me wants to.

"I know everyone on Earth," Santa says, taking a puff from his pipe. "Even those from different times. And everyone on Earth knows me."

"I've never heard of you before today," I point out.

"You're from Panem, yes?" Santa muses. "That's a dark time in Earth's history. As for why you don't know who I am, I am not a fully physical being. Not in the sense you are. I exist in this state only because of children's belief in me. If that belief were to be lost, I would cease to exist. At least physically. But, if belief in me were to be restored, I would be able to return."

"You're not human?" I ask.

"Not exactly," Santa says. "I am whatever I am believed to be."

"Katniss are you alright?" the Doctor asks. His voice is muffled by the door.

"I'm fine," I say.

"Good," the Doctor says. "Because I would be grateful if you could open the doors and let us in before the Cybermen get us. They're getting a little too close for comfort."

Cursing myself for temporarily forgetting Peeta and I the Doctor, I dash to the doors. I lift up the bar before pulling the doors open. The Doctor bounds inside followed closely by Peeta. Once they're through, I shut and bar the door again.

"Santa!" the Doctor proclaims. "What happened?"

Santa takes a puff from his pipe before explaining. "The Cybermats showed up about a month ago," he says. "I thought they were toys at first."

"What's a Cybermat?" Peeta asks.

"They're small mechanical scouts for the Cybermen," the Doctor answers. "The ones I faced around here last time could bite humans and convert them into Cyberslaves."

"That's what they did," Santa says glumly. "They started biting my helpers. At first I thought people were just getting sick. Then they started . . . changing. When the conversion was complete, they attacked those that weren't infected. There were no survivors. At least none that I know of."

"But you escaped," the Doctor says.

Santa shakes his head sadly. "No Doctor," he says grimly. He pulls off his left glove and rolls up the sleeve revealing an arm that looks like it belongs to a Cyberman. "I was bitten too."


	3. The Plan

"How?" the Doctor asks, staring at Santa's arm in alarm. "When?"

"I was one of the first," Santa says. "About a month ago, just when we started production for this year."

"A month?" the Doctor asks in surprise. "The conversion process usually takes fifty minutes."

"Yes," Santa says. "But I'm not exactly a normal case, am I? But I have to focus on it. Even then, I can only slow it down. I'm afraid I'm running out of time."

"Wait, how can you be changing?" I ask. "You said you weren't entirely real."

"Ah, but I did also say that I am whatever I am believed to be," Santa says. "If I am believed to be human, then I will be human. A real human, not just an illusion. If something happens to me, it would be the same as if it happened to a real person. So when the Cybermat bit me, well." He gestures to his arm. "It's as if a real human was bit."

"Lucky we showed up then," the Doctor says. "I remember the cure. You'll be back to normal in no time."

"No," Santa says. "You have to stop the Cybermen first. They're using the workshop to make Cybermats."

"But it was destroyed," Peeta points out. "We saw the wreckage."

"The one at the entrance is for show," Santa says. "It's too small for me to possibly keep up with the demand. Kids these days. There are more of them and they want everything. Anyway, the real workshop is below us. It's more of a factory really. They could easily produce several million Cybermats a day."

"Why?" the Doctor asks. "What do they need more for?"

"I don't know," Santa says, grimacing. "But I fear the worst."

I think I know what the Cybermen are up to. If I'm right, the implication is terrifying. "You travel all over the world in one night, right?" I ask.

"Once a year, every year," Santa says.

"And you visit _every_ child in the world?" I continue.

"Only the ones that celebrate Christmas," he says. "But what does that have to do with the Cybermen?"

"You leave them presents," I comment.

"Of course!" the Doctor exclaims. "They've replaced the presents with Cybermats. When children open their presents on Christmas day, they get bitten. Within an hour they'll be Cyberslaves."

"Then they take over the world," I say, feeling a sense of dread. It's the perfect plan. No one would expect it. And no parent would kill their child, even if it has been turned into a mechanical, emotionless slave. It's the perfect weapon.

"How do we stop them?" Peeta asks.

"We can use an amplified sonic pulse," the Doctor says. "The factory has a speaker system throughout it and I've got this." He pulls out his screwdriver.

"I'm afraid it won't be that easy," Santa says. "It's Christmas Eve."

"So?" I ask.

"Christmas Eve is the night the presents get delivered," the Doctor says.

"Of course," I snap. "Because it couldn't be easy for once."

"It's not fun when it's easy," the Doctor comments.

"You have a weird sense of fun," I grumble.

"They may not have left yet," Santa says. "The android copies of me were still charging last I knew."

"Okay, that gives us something at least," the Doctor says. "Stop the androids, stop the sleighs and the delivery of presents, save the world. Again."

"Can't the Cybermen fly them?" Peeta asks.

"No," Santa says. "The sleighs will only respond to a voice command from me or one of the androids.

"How long before they're done charging?" I ask.

Santa glances at a large clock set in the wall behind him. "That's bad," he says grimly.

"What?" Peeta asks.

Santa turns back to us before answering. "You have twenty minutes."

* * *

**Hey all,**

**Odds are, this will be the last chapter until after Christmas (unless I can finish the next one tonight, which might not happen). So I apologize if I leave you on such an ominous cliffhanger. But if you all make it through the 25th without being bitten by a Cybermat, our trio was clearly successful. Otherwise, it was nice knowing all of you.**

**Also, I've had a couple people either leave this question in the review or they've PM'd me, but just so you all know, the Cybermen in the North Pole were the main point of Blood of the Cybermen which was a Doctor Who computer game that came out in 2010 or 2011.**

**Anyway, if I don't manage to finish the next chapter before tonight, then I hope you all have an awesome winter break.**


	4. The Factory

**Hey all, I hope you had an awesome Christmas. Or an awesome day if you don't celebrate Christmas. At any rate, sorry this is a little late. Family didn't leave until yesterday, but I did manage to get some writing done. With any luck the last part will be up sometime tomorrow. Otherwise, it won't go up until the 1st or 2nd since I'm in marching band and I have to go to the bowl game. **

**Anyway, sorry this is late, and I promise I'll work to get the rest up by tonight or tomorrow so we can return to the main series with _Odyssey _when I get back.**

**Allons-y!**

* * *

"Twenty minutes to stop the Cybermen and save the world," the Doctor paces back and forth. "I seem to only have twenty minutes a lot. It's becoming a thing."

"You're wasting time," I snap, irritated at the Doctor's aimless ramblings.

"Right, sorry," the Doctor says, smacking his forehead with an open hand. "Any ideas?"

"Can we do what we did last time?" Peeta asks. "Overload them and blow them up?"

The Doctor shakes his head. "Not this time," he says. "The Cybermen are connected to each other since the mainframe was destroyed the last time I was here. The only way to destroy them that way would be to subdue one of them and access the emotional inhibitor. Even then, it probably wouldn't work."

"We have to fight them then," I say.

"That's not a good idea," Peeta says. "We have no idea how many of them there are."

"I have a suggestion," Santa says. "But it does have a risk."

"They're Cybermen," the Doctor says. "Anything we do is risky."

Santa nods. "There's a stone I keep at the heart of the factory," he says. "It provides all the power we need to keep the factory going."

"How does a stone help us?" Peeta asks.

"It's not any stone," Santa says. "It channels all the faith and hopes and dreams of children. It's what keeps the factory running."

"So we destroy the stone and stop the Cybermen," I say.

"No!" Santa exclaims. "If you destroy the stone, the factory will never work again. You have to find a way to connect the stone to the Cybermen. That should stop them. But getting to the stone will be the difficult bit." Santa shifts in his seat. "It's at the center of the factory. And the Cybermen are likely guarding it."

"Of course," I comment dryly.

"Come on then," the Doctor says. "We don't have time to waste." Without waiting for us to comment, he pushes open the door and bounds out. Peeta and I follow.

"Good luck," Santa calls after us before the doors swing shut.

We follow the Doctor down the hallway until he opens a door and steps through the doorway. I follow, Peeta close behind. When I step through the doorway, I freeze. Peeta doesn't have time to stop and runs into me. We tumble to the floor and fall in a heap. We untangle ourselves and stand, looking around in awe at the impressive sight below us.

The doorway lead to a ledge that overlooks the largest room I've ever seen. Every inch of it seems to be crammed with machinery. Yet the whole thing is completely silent despite all the machines being active. "What is this place?" I ask.

"Santa's workshop," the Doctor answers. "I'd love to stay and admire it too, but we've got a job to do."

"Where do we go?" Peeta asks.

"We have to get to the center of the factory," the Doctor says. "Stay close to me and watch out for Cybermen and Cybermats."

Without further comment, the Doctor shimmies down a ladder attached to the platform. Peeta follows, and I cautiously follow him. The ladder isn't very long and soon, we reach the ground. We're at an intersection that leads to five different directions. The Doctor makes a sweep with his screwdriver. "This way," he says, leading us down the second path from the left.

Slowly, we make our way through the factory. I don't see any Cybermen, but I can hear them marching throughout the factory. Several times I spot their shadows as they patrol, but they never come into sight. The only thing I see is Cybermats. They scuttle around the machinery, but don't take notice of us.

"What's wrong with them?" Peeta asks. "I thought they would attack us."

"I don't know," the Doctor muses. "They may be defective."

"We might be walking into a trap," I caution.

"Probably," the Doctor says. "But there's no other way to get to the heart of the factory. Just don't let them touch you and you'll be fine. Also, avoid the Cybermats. Getting bitten would be . . . well, bad."

"Thanks for the insight," I say sarcastically.

We follow the Doctor deeper into the factory, winding our way through the walkways between the machines. Finally, we pass out of the machines and into a large open space. At the center is what looks like an altar. On top of it is a small stone. It looks about the size and shape of an egg and glows with a soft golden light.

But of more immediate interest is the group of Cybermen standing around it. I count eight of them, all facing outwards. "It's impossible," I whisper, hoping the Cybermen can't hear me. They don't react so I take it as a good sign. "We can't get to the stone without them noticing."

The Doctor rubs his chin. "Blimey," he muses. "This is going to be a bit harder than I thought. I didn't expect this many."

"So what do we do now?" I ask, looking around for something that could help us.

"I'm thinking," the Doctor says.

"If someone's been bitten by a Cybermat, will the Cybermen recognize the victim as one of their own?" Peeta asks.

"Yes, why?" the Doctor asks.

"The conversion process takes fifty minutes?" Peeta pushes.

"Usually," the Doctor says. "Though it varies based on body weight and height and whatnot. Why?"

I know what he's thinking, and I'm not going to let it happen. "No," I say. "Peeta, I won't let you do that!" If he becomes a Cyberman, it would be a fate worse than death.

"Katniss," Peeta says gently.

"No!" I insist. "I'm not going to let you do this! What happens if we can't save you?"

"You'll just have to move quickly," Peeta says. "Stop the Cybermen then the Doctor can make the Antidote."

"No!" I say again, more insistently. "You can't do this! I won't lose you again, not like this." I grab his arms to prevent him from doing something reckless and stupid.

"Someone has to do something," Peeta says. Before I can stop him, he breaks free from my grip. I reach to grab him again, but he shoves me down and grabs a Cybermat as it scuttles by.

"Peeta, no!" I scream, scrambling to my feet not caring if the Cybermen hear us.

"If this doesn't work," Peeta says. "I love you." In one quick motion, Peeta brings the Cybermat to his arm. A small cover opens at the front of the Cybermat, revealing a mouth full of sharp teeth. The mouth opens and the Cybermat sinks its teeth into Peeta's arm.


	5. The Cybermen

"No!" I scream, reaching out, desperately hoping I can tear the Cybermat away before it infects Peeta. But it's too late. The Cybermat falls from Peeta's grip and scuttles away. Peeta winces as he holds his arm up to inspect the bite.

The teeth marks form a perfect crescent shape. Oddly the marks don't bleed, but instead ooze a silvery liquid I can't identify. "No, no, no!" I cry, gripping Peeta's arm and hoping that my force of will is enough to stop him from becoming an empty metal shell. I turn to the Doctor. "Make the antidote!" I order. "Make it now!"

"It's okay Katniss," Peeta says soothingly. He strokes my hair with his undamaged hand. "We have to make sure that no one else can be harmed. This was the only way. Stop the Cybermen. Then worry about me. I've got an hour so don't waste it. I'll be back."

He gently slips out of my iron grip and towards the Cybermen. Several of them turn to face him as he gets closer. "Subject has been infected," one of them drones. "Cycle is not yet complete. Erratic behavior expected until subject becomes Cyberslave. Subject is irrelevant."

"Affirmative," another drones. They all turn away from Peeta. He takes the opportunity to snatch the stone from its pedestal. He shoves it under his shirt before making his way back towards us. The Cybermen continue to ignore him. He makes it halfway to us before his face spasms. The Cybermen that were guarding the stone snap around to face Peeta.

"Alert, mental link established," one of them drones. "It is a trick. He has stolen the factory's power source and will return it to the Doctor. Delete! Delete!" They all form up and start marching towards Peeta. He seems frozen in place as if fighting an inner battle with himself. It's the same look he had back during the revolution when he was trying to recover from being hijacked.

I realize that whatever's going on inside him, he's paralyzed. I dash out from behind the machinery and towards him, pumping my legs as hard and fast as possible. I will not let him die, regardless of what the cost may be.

I reach him before the Cybermen do and grab his arm. The sensation seems to jolt him out of his paralysis. "What are you doing?" I scream. "Run!"

I turn around and run away from the Cybermen, dragging Peeta behind me. The Doctor runs to us, and together we manage to half drag, half carry Peeta away from the Cybermen. When the Doctor judges that we're a safe distance away from the Cybermen, he stops.

"What now?" Peeta asks. His voice wavers and I know he's fighting as hard as he can against the conversion process.

In answer, the Doctor pulls out his screwdriver and points it at Peeta. "This might hurt," the Doctor says. "Or it might not. I don't actually know. I've never done this before."

"That's comforting," Peeta says through gritted teeth.

The Doctor activates his screwdriver. Peeta moans and his eyes flutter and roll aimlessly. After a moment the Doctor stops. "That should keep the Cybermen out of your head for a little while longer," he says. "Now we need that stone."

Peeta shakily pulls out the stone and proffers it to me. Gently, I pluck the stone from his unsteady hands. I notice uneasily that they've grown cold and feel almost metallic. But when I hold the stone, my unease fades away.

As I cradle it in my hands, I feel an unexpected warmth flood through me. More than that, I feel rejuvenated. Not just physically, but mentally too. I also feel happy. It's so out of place that I wonder for a moment if I've gone insane. But the happiness is accompanied by an unexpected flood of hope. It's strange but wonderful at the same time.

"What is this?" I ask.

"The collective hopes, dreams, love, and happiness of every child in the world," the Doctor answers softly. "It's how we're going to stop the Cybermen. But first, we need one to volunteer."

"I don't think they're going to be too happy with that idea," Peeta says through clenched teeth. His skin is noticeably greyer.

"What's the plan?" I ask.

"I need you to climb up there," the Doctor says, pointing to a long metal platform above us. "We leave Peeta here. The Cyberman will split up to search for us. When one shows up and examines Peeta, drop down on it. It should knock it over. That's when I come in, paralyze it then connect it to this." The Doctor takes the stone from my hand. "They won't be able to handle it and it should destroy them."

"We're going to blow them up with love?" I ask incredulously.

"I've done it before," the Doctor says indignantly. "Well, technically it wasn't _me _but I helped. Sort of."

We fall silent as the sound of a Cyberman's footsteps gets louder. I give Peeta's hand a quick squeeze. His hand spasms and it worries me that his hands feel like they're made of steel. I hope this works out soon. The faster we stop the Cybermen, the sooner the Doctor can make the antidote to save Peeta.

I clamber up the machines to the platform. Fortunately, it's an easy climb since so many pieces stick out everywhere. I wait, looking down at Peeta as he lies on the floor. He looks worse and I'm afraid he can't hold out much longer. But there's nothing I can do so I grit my teeth and hope that a Cyberman shows up soon.

I don't have to wait long.

Only a few minutes after perching on the platform, a Cyberman marches into view. It turns and spots Peeta. It's emotionless steel face swivels back and forth, searching for me and the Doctor. Seemingly satisfied that we aren't around, it marches towards Peeta. I wait, holding my breath as the sound of the Cyberman's footsteps echo eerily in the factory.

When it finally stands over Peeta, it looks down on him. "Conversion at seventy-four percent," it drones. "You will have no fear, you will have no pain."

"You want to test that?" I ask. The Cyberman looks up at me. If I didn't know it didn't feel anything, I would say it seemed surprised. Before it can react, I jump down and land on it. It collapses to the ground and I manage to roll free. The Doctor dashes from his hiding place, pointing his activated screwdriver at the Cyberman.

The Cyberman emits an electronic shriek then falls silent. The Doctor points his screwdriver at the Cyberman's chest and activates it. A hatch in the Cyberman's chest slides open, revealing an open cavity. Inside is a mass of white stringy material interlaced with wiring and electronics.

The Doctor pulls the stone from his jacket pocket. He places it next to the Cyberman before reaching into the Cyberman's cavity. He pulls out several wires and pulls them apart before wrapping them around the stone. "Stand back," he warns. "I don't know what this is going to do."

I step back, but I have to drag Peeta away. In the dim light, I notice that his arms now look like they belong to a Cyberman and his face is starting to look like their heads. "Stay with me," I whisper. "Just a little longer."

His eyes flutter open for a moment. "Always," he murmers.

The Doctor stands next to me, pointing his screwdriver at the Cyberman. It lets out an electronic screech that increases in pitch and intensity. I cover my ears, but the sound feels like it's driving its way into my brain. Then it stops. Cautiously, I lower my hands from my ears.

"It's over," the Doctor says wearily.

"Not yet," I say. "We still have to save Peeta."

"No time to lose then," the Doctor replies. He picks Peeta up as if he weighs no more than a child and makes his way towards the exit. I follow him, stepping over the still Cybermen, half expecting them to reach up and grab me. But none of them move.

We don't stop until we reach Santa's room. He raises an eyebrow as we enter. "I take it you were successful?" He asks.

"The Cybermen are down," the Doctor says. "All we need now is to fix you two up." He lays Peeta on the floor before moving to a cupboard. "Fortunately, the antidote is easy to make," he says, opening the cupboard. "I need. . . " he trails off as he pulls out seemingly random bottles of chemicals.

When he's satisfied with what he has, he sets about mixing them. I would ask what he's doing, but I know he'll go off on a long, complicated explanation that I won't understand. Instead, I pace the room over and over. As I walk by the door, I hear something. I pause and listen. I can't tell what it is at first, but as it gets louder, I can make out the sound of Cybermen marching.

"Doctor, Cybermen are coming!" I shout.

The Doctor doesn't glance up from his mixture. "Barricade the door," he says calmly.

"With what?" I ask. There's nothing to block the door with."

"It's got a lock doesn't it?" the Doctor asks.

"I don't think it's going to help much," I comment. The lock doesn't look particularly strong. Not surprising since it's unlikely that anyone would bother breaking in here. But it's better than nothing, so I lock it.

The Doctor finishes the antidote. "It's ready," he says.

"Great," I say. "Just in time for us to get killed by the Cybermen." I glance around the room for a weapon, but there's nothing usable unless I can break a chair off of Santa's chair. But he's too large for me to possibly move. Besides, it looks well enough built that I'll need an axe. Of course if I had one of those I would just use it.

The Doctor pulls a pair of syringes out of his jacket and inserts them in the antidote. He pulls back the plungers, filling the syringes. He passes me one. "Put the needle in above his arm and depress the plunger," he instructs.

I move to Peeta and stick the needle in his right shoulder. His arm seems to be made of steel, making it difficult to get the needle into the skin. But finally, I manage to get it in. I depress the plunger. Peeta gasps. His skin seems to ripple before it slowly changes back to normal.

His eyes flutter open. "I told you it would work," he says.

"Never do anything like that again," I reply. "I won't lose you. Not like that. Not again."

Someone, probably the Cybermen, hammer on the door. I spin around to see it shake and strain against the doorframe. The Cybermen continue to hammer on it. I don't think the door is going to hold out long. I look around the room for a weapon, but again I don't see anything.

"Open the door," Santa says.

"What?" Peeta and I ask at the same time.

"Trust me," Santa says softly.

The Doctor moves to the door and puts one hand on the lock and the other on the door handle.

"Don't," I plead. If the Cybermen come in, we have nowhere to go and no way to fight them off.

The Doctor glances to Santa who just nods. The Doctor unlocks the door and throws it open. The Cybermen step into the room and I brace myself for the inevitable end.

But the Cybermen make no move towards us. Instead, Santa stands and walks towards them. I expect them to attack and kill him, but still they don't move.

"You've changed," Santa says to them.

"Yes," one of them drones. "We are no longer Cybermen."

Peeta and I share a confused look.

"What do you mean?" the Doctor asks.

"You destroyed the emotional inhibitors," one of them drones. "Yet we survived. We remember who we are."

"You're human again," the Doctor says, a huge grin spreading across again. "You're all human again." He laughs. "Everybody lives!"

I cautiously approach the Cybermen. "So you're not here to kill us?"

"No," one drones. "We are ourselves again." It turns to Santa. "We want to stay."

"Of course," Santa says. "You're more than welcome to stay."

"Thank you," the Cyberman drones. It turns to us. "And thank you . . . for saving us."

"Come on then," the Doctor says jovially. "Back to the TARDIS."

"Where to?" Peeta asks."

The Doctor grins. "Onward and forward," he Doctor says.


End file.
